Speculative Fiction Links of the Week for September 26, 2025

 

It's time for the latest weekly round-up of interesting links about speculative fiction from around the web, this week with Star Trek: Strange New Worlds and Star Trek in general, Masters of the Universe in general, Peacemaker and the DC Cinematic Universe in general,, Alien Earth, Outlander: Blood of My Blood, season 2 of Gen V, Marvel Zombies and the Marvel Cinematic Universe in general, Star Wars in general, Him, All of You, Wayward, the suspension and reinstatement of Jimmy Kimmel, tributes to Claudia Cardinale and much more.

Speculative fiction in general:

• Fiona Denton shares horror novels coming out this fall. 
• James Davis Nicoll shares five SFF stories about travel 
• Bookmarkedone lists SFF works featuring older female protagonists. 
• James Davis Nicoll wonders whether romance can be hard science fiction. 
• Jenny Hamilton discusses the recent trend of taking fanfiction and publishing it as original work, often romantasy, after filing the serial numbers off. 
• Rachel Ayers shares six retellings of the story of Tam Lin  
• Rob Thornton shares some of the songs mentioned in the John the Balladeer stories by Manly Wade Wellman.
• Charles T. Rubin discusses William Gibson's vision of the city of the future. 
• Emily Temple profiles Maggie Bradbury, wife of Ray Bradbury. 
• Ed Simon talks about Miguel de Cervantes' years of slavery in Northern Africa and how they influenced his fiction. 
• Science fiction writer Jon Lasser has died aged 49. 

 

Comics and Art:

• Robin Marx reviews issue 6 of The Savage Sword of Conan
• Ben Herman reviews Deadpool/Batman: The Dead of Knight by Zeb Wells and Greg Capullo 
• Zach Rabiroff interviews pioneering comics retailer Bud Plant. 

 

Film and TV: 

• Petrana Radluvic shares all the SFF movies premiering in October.  
• Petrana Radluvic shares all the SFF TV shows premiering in October. 
• Matthew Jackson calls Deathstalker a goofy and mayhem-filled remake. 
• Justin Carter notes that Knights of Guinevere offers some good, surreal science fiction
• Leah Schnelbach calls Rabbit Trap a compelling dark fairy tale that’s light on horror 
• Cheryl Eddy declares that the season 13 finale of Futurama is the perfect exploration of futility and chaos
• Ann Michelle Harris declares that the anime Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle offers stunning animation and nonstop action 
• Phul Hoad declares that Please Don’t Feed the Children combines 1970s exploitation with a YA fairytale 
• Arturo Serrano calls T.I.M. a tediously imitative science fiction movie 
• Phil Hoad reports that Detective Conan: One-Eyed Flashback juggles byzantine intrigue, spies and cop rivalries with stylish flair  
• Emmet Asher-Perrin declares that A Big Bold Beautiful Journey is refreshingly clear-eyed about love 
• Germain Lussie calls Primate the first big horror movie of 2026 
• Germain Lussier calls Obsession a simple, perfect mix of scares, gore and uncomfortable laughs.
• Germain Lussier declares that Shelby Oaks puts a satisfying, scary spin on the found footage genre
• Cheryl Eddy calls Night of the Reaper a retro babysitter slasher with a mystery twist   
• Jack Seale calls Haunted Hotel a bland addition to the teetering pile of landfill comedy 
• Germain Lussier declares that Black Phone 2 is everything you want in a horror sequel  
• Germain Lussier declares that the Silent Night, Deadly Night remake doesn’t ring in the holiday cheer  
• Diana Keng shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Invasion. 
• James Whitbrook shares his thoughts on the Dan Da Dan finale. 
• Catherine Bray calls the documentary Sane Inside Insanity: The Phenomenon of Rocky Horror a joyous fan history of the cult classic 
• Jacob Oller declares that the documentary Chain Reaction gives The Texas Chain Saw Massacre the autopsy it deserves. 
• Jacob Oller declares that the documentary MegaDoc is the Rosetta Stone for appreciating (if not understanding) Megalopolis 
• Lauren Huff shares a look behind the scenes of the horror film Good Boy. 
• Paste Magazine share their thirtx favourite coming of age horror movies. 
• Nate Richard interviews Zach Cregger, director of Weapons. 
• Rebecca Liu interviews Sandra Oh, star of Killing Eve, Can I Get a Witness?, Grey's Anatomy and many others. 
• Sean David interviews Michael Dudikoff, star of the American Ninja movies and many others. 
• Steve Rose interviews Chris Sarandon, star of The Princess Bride, Fright Night, Dog Day Afternoon, Child's Play, A Nightmare Before Christmas and many others. 
• Rich Pelley interviews Nick Offerman, star of The Last of Us, Sovereign and many others. 
• Nick Romano interviews the stars of The Witcher. 
• Ryan Gilbey interviews Frank Dillance who played Nick Clark in Fear the Walking Dead. 
• Isaiah Colbert interviews Bryson Baugus and Christopher Wehkamp, two voice actors for the anime Gachiakuta. 
• Noel Murray revisits the 1962 Twilight Zone episode "Nothing in the Dark", starring the late Robert Redford as Death. 
• Leslie Felperin revisits the 1965 Thunderbirds episodes "Trapped in the Sky" and "Terror in New York City" 
• Todd Gilchrist revisits the 1969 James Bond movie On Her Majesty's Secret Service, 
• Cheryl Eddy revisits the 1981 science fiction thriller Scanners. 
• Alasdair Stuart revisits the 1992 technothriller Sneakers.
• Keith R.A. DeCandido revisits the 1996 Babylon 5 episode “The Summoning”  
• Kali Wallace revisits the 2018 dystopian science fiction film Aniara. 
• Nadeem Badshah reports that Noel Clarke, who played Mickey Smith in Doctor Who and wrote and starred in Kidulthood, has been arrested in his home in London, UK. 
• Jill Goldsmith reports that cinema owners in the US have spent 1.5 billion US-dollar upgrading their theatres in the past few years. 
• Screenwriter Ron Friedman, who developed the backstory for the 1980s incarnation of GI Joe and killed off Optimus Prime in Transformers The Movie, has died aged 93. 

 

Tributes to Claudia Cardinale:

• Italian actress Claudia Cardinale, star of Cartouche, The Pink Panther, Once Upon a Time in the West, The Leopard and many others, has died aged 87. 
• Jordan Mintzer remembers Claudia Cardinale. 
• Peter Bradshaw remembers Claudia Cardinale and notes that Hollywood just couldn't do her justice. 
• Greg Whitmore shares photos of Claudia Cardinale's long career. 

 

Comments on Masters of the Universe in general:

• James Eatock explains how the character of Lodar from the Masters of the Universe mini-comic "Slave City" was created by accident.
• He-Mania reports that a cardboard standee of He-Man on Battlecat from the upcoming live action movie has been spotted at a toy industry event in El Segundo, California.

Comments on Peacemaker and the DC Cinematic Universe in general: 

• Emmet Asher-Perrin shares their thoughts on the latest episode of Peacemaker.
• Melody McCune shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Peacemaker. 
• Jarrod Jones shares his thoughts on the latest episode of Peacemaker. 
• Isaiah Colbert shares his thoughts on the latest episode of Peacemaker.  

 

Comments on Star Trek: Strange New Worlds and Star Trek in general: 

• Keith R.A. DeCandido discusses the latest season of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. 
• Avery Kaplan and Diana Keng discuss the latest season of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.
• Surekha Davies explains why the Borg Collective is the perfect Star Trek monster for our times. 
• Avery Kaplan wonders if the upcoming animated series Star Trek Scouts is connected to Star Trek: Lower Decks. 

 

Comments on seaosn 2 of Gen V: 

• Ben Francisco shares his thoughts on the season 2 premiere of Gen V. 
• Manuel Betancourt shares his thoughts on the latest episode of season 2 of Gen V.  
• Melody McCune shares her thoughts on the latest episode of season 2 of Gen V.

 

Comments on Alien: Earth:

• Leah Schnelbach shares her thoughts on the season finale of Alien Earth.
• Matt Schimkowitz shares his thoughts on the season finale of Alien Earth. 
• Brian Tallerico shares his thoughts on the season finale  of Alien Earth.  
• Germain Lussier shares his thoughts on the season finale  of Alien Earth.  
• Daniel D'Addario interviews Noah Hawley, showrunner of Alien Earth. 
• Stuart Heritage praises the tentacled eyebal alien from Alien: Earth. 
• Jim Vorel revisits the 1986 movie Aliens. 
• Caroline Siede shares her appreciation for the character of Ellen Ripley in Alien and Aliens.

 

Comments on Outlander: Blood of My Blood: 

• Melody McCune shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Outlander: Blood of My Blood. 
• Melody McCune shares her favourite moments from the latest episode of Outlander: Blood of My Blood.
• Diana Keng pays a visit to Doune Castle in Stirling, Scotland, a filming location for Outlander: Blood of My Blood.

 

Comments on All of You: 

• Benjamin Lee calls All of You a science fiction tinged relationship drama. 
• Caroline Siede calls All of You a compelling science fiction romance. 

 

Comments on the Marvel Zombies and the Marvel Cinematic Universe in general: 

• Jarrod Jones declares that Marvel Zombies has plenty of gore but no guts
• Justin Carter declares that Marvel Zombies has plenty of blood, but no heart 
• Watch a video about how the robot Herbie from Fantastic Four: First Steps was brought to life. 

Comments on Star Wars in general:  

• Naman Ramachandran shares actor John Boyega's ideas about improving the Star Wars sequel trilogy 
• Ben Child shares some speculations about the upcoming Star Wars Starfighter movie.  
• James Whitbrook shares a brief history of muscular Hutts in the Star Wars universe. 
• Watch a trailer for Volume 3 of Star Wars Visions. 
• Watch a trailer for The Mandalorian and Grogu.  

 

Comments on Him: 

• Leah Schnelbach declares that Him fumbles its journey to horror greatness.
• Matt Schimkowitz discusses some biblical themes in Him. 
• Germain Lussier interviews Justin Tipping, director of Him. 

 

Comments on Wayward: 

• Lucy Mangan calls Wayward an eerie thriller about teen runaways  
• Saloni Gajjar calls Wayward a creepy mini-series. 
• Lacy Baugher Milas calls Wayward a twisty thriller. 

 

Comments on the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel:

• Steve Vertlieb talks about the silencing of Jimmy Kimmel and Stephen Colbert.  
• Dan Gilroy, writer of Andor, speaks out about the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel and the boycotts organised by viewers. 
• Tom Tapp reports that actress Tatiana Maslany, star of She-Hulk and Orphan Black, and other actors have called for boycotting Disney properties following the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel. 
• Erica Gerald Mason shares actor Patton Oswalt's comments about the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel 
• Cynthia Littleton and Brian Steinberg discuss that there are discussions going on between Disney/ABC and Jimmy Kimmel's representatives to find a solution and bring back Jimmy Kimmel Live.  
• Peter White reports that following pressure and boycotts, Jimmy Kimmel Live will return this Tuesday.  
• Dominic Patten shares some background on the negotiations that brought back Jimmy Kimmel Live. 
• Adrian Horton and Anna Betts report that Jimmy Kimmel called the attempt to silence him "unamerican" in his return to the airwaves.  
• Inspired by the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel, Jesse Hassenger chronicles how Disney first found and then lost its backbone. 
• Eric Berger reports that Disney is raising the prices for its streaming services in the wake of the boycotts and cancellations that followed the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel. 

 

 

Awards:

• The winner of the 2025 WSFA Small Press Award has been announced.
• The winners of the 2025 Premio Ignotus have been announced. 
• The finalists for the 2025 Prix Aurora-Boréal have been announced. 
• The winners of the 2025 Jerzy Żuławski Award have been announced. 
• The finalists for the 2025 British Audio Awards a.k.a. The Speakies have been announced.
• The winners of the 2025 Alberta Book Publishing Awards have been announced. 
• The winners of the 2025 New York Science Fiction Film Festival have been announced.
• The shortlist for the 2025 Booker Prize has been announced. 

 

Writing, publishing and promotion: 

• Rebecca Kanner explains how to surprise everyone with your plotting... even yourself. 
• Guy Windsor lists three tips for writing sword fights. 
• Joan O'Leary discusses the parallels between fiction writing and television production
• Leslie Budewitz discusses how maps, cast lists, epigraphs and recipes can add to your fiction. 
• Molly Templeton talks about collecting favourite sentences. 
• Claire Kirch reports that actor and reading activist LeVar Burton has been named indie bookstore ambassador by the American Association of Booksellers. 
• Miranda Bryant is concerned that young people in Finland are chosing to read in English over their mother tongue. 
• Joe Stein talks about the Anthropic AI settlement. 
• Jim Milliot shares an update on the Anthropic AI settlement. 
• Nathalie op de Beeck lists eight book banning court cases in the US to watch.

 

Interviews:

• The Guardian interviews Nick Harkaway.
• Paul Weimer interviews Fran Wilde. 
• Jeff Spry interviews astronaut and writer Chris Hadfield. 
• Paul Weimer interviews Sean C.W. Korsgaard. 

 

Reviews: 

• Jenny Hamilton reviews A Rebel’s History of Mars by Nadia Afifi 
• Gayle Surrette reviews Framed in Death by J.D. Robb  
• Mark Yon reviews Extremity by Nicholas Binge  
• Marlene Harris reviews Extremity by Nicholas Binge 
• Liz Bourke reviews Volatile Memory by Seth Haddon 
• Z.B. Steele reviews Demon in White by Christopher Ruocchio 
• Mark Yon reviews Saltcrop by Yume Kitasei. 
• Runalong the Shelves reviews No One Hears The Last Shot by Lavie Tidhar 
• Runalong the Shelves reviews If The Stars Are Lit by Sara K Ellis  
• Marion Deeds reviews Stone & Sky by Ben Aaronovitch 
• Liz Bourke reviews Queen Demon by Martha Wells  
• Paul Weimer reviews Queen Demon by Martha Wells   
• Fantasy Faction reviews The Queen of Hearts by Colleen Oakes 
• Marion Deeds reviews  The Adventures of Mary Darling by Pat Murphy
• Abigail Nussbaumj reviews The Magician of Tiger Castle by Louis Sachar 
• Alex Brown reviews Coffeeshop in an Alternate Universe by C.B. Lee 
• Blue Book Balloon reviews The Undercutting of Rosie and Adam by Megan Bannen  
• Marlene Harris reviews The Most Unusual Haunting of Edgar Lovejoy by Roan Parrish 
• Marlene Harris reviews Love at First Fright by Nadia El-Fassi 
• Colleen Mondor reviews The Whisperwood Legacy by Jo Schulte 
• Mandie Griffiths reviews Broken Ghosts by J.D. Oswald  
• Z.B. Steele reviews Red Country by Joe Abercrombie 
• Julia Kitvaria Sarene reviews Little Thieves by Margaret Owen 
• Runalong the Shelves reviews The Castaway and The Witch by Ioanna Papadopoulou 
• James Davis Nicoll reviews Sabrena Swept Away by Karuna Riazi  
• Ian Mond reviews Girl in the Creek by Wendy N. Wagner 
• Julia Kitvaria Sarene reviews  By Blood, By Salt by J. L. Odom 
• Julia Kitvaria Sarene reviews Death’s Emissary by Emily Devereux 
• Rob Bedford reviews King Sorrow by Joe Hill. 
• Ed Crocker reviews Body of Water by Adam Godfrey 
• Gary K. Wolfe reviews Wreckage and What Happens in Hello Jack by Peter Straub 
• Blue Book Balloon reviews The Great Deception by Syd Moore  
• Z.B. Steele reviews The Will of the Many by James Islington
• Robert Mammone reviews Old Gods and Other Tales by Scott Oden
• Abigail Nussbaum reviews The End of the World As We Know It: New Tales of Stephen King’s The Stand, edited by Christopher Golden and Brian Keene 
• Hamish Johnston reviews Do Aliens Speak Physics? by Daniel Whiteson and Andy Warner

 

Classics reviews:

• Ilana Masad revisits the 1929 science fiction novel Out of the Void by Leslie F. Stone 
• James Wallace Harris revisits the 1948 YA science fiction novel Space Cadet by Robert A. Heinlein. 
• Dave Hook revisits the 1954 anthology 6 Great Short Novels of Science Fiction, edited by Groff Conklin 
• Gideon Marcus revisits the October 1970 issue of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction.
• Gideon Marcus revisits the 1970 science fiction novel The Guns of Terra 10 by Don Pendleton, Winona Menezes revisits the 1970 science fiction novel Dread Companion by Andre Norton and Victoria Silverwolf revisits the 1970 science fiction novel The Methuselah Enzyme by Fred Mustard Stewart
• Kris Vyas-Myall revisits the 1970 science fiction anthology The Disappearing Future, edited by George Hay. 
• James Davis Nicoll revisitis the 1980 sword and sorcery novel Frostflower and Thorn by Phyllis Ann Karr 
• James Davis Nicoll revisits the 2010 time travel duology Blackout/All Clear by Connie Willis 
      

Crowdfunding:

• The animated series The Dragon King, sequel to The Dragon Prince, is looking for funding. 

 

Con and event reports:

• Hugo, Girl! report about the 2025 Worldcon in Seattle, Washington, the 2025 DragonCon in Atlanta, Georgia and the 2025 ArmadilloCon in Austin, Texas.
• Watch a video of the panel "The Shifting Landscape of Epic Fantasy" with George R.R. Martin, Robin Hobb, ‪Brandon Sanderson‬, Rebecca Roanhorse and Ryan Cahill at the 2025 Worldcon in Seattle, Washington..  
• Yume Kitasei has announced the launch of the 2025 Traveling Science Fiction and Fantasy Book Festival in eight cities in the northeastern US. 
• Aaron Couch reports that an AI hologram of Stan Lee will speak to fans at LA Comic Con in Los Angeles, California. 
• Keza MacDonald reports that the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, California, is having proclems because many international guests refuse to travel to the US. 
• Jeff Lunden reports that an opera based on Michael Chabon's novel The Amazing Adventures of Cavalier and Clay by Mason Bates and Gene Scheeer will soon be opening in New York City. 
• Sabina Graves reports about the Halloween Horror Nights event at the Universal Studios theme park in Orlando, Florida. 
• Alice Cunningham reports that a Steampunk cum tiki bar shed in Ipswich, UK, has won a competition for the best shed.

 

Science and technology:

• Monisha Ravisetti reports that NASA has found 6000 exoplanets. 
• James Davis Nicoll reports that astronomers have discovered an exoplanet in the habitable zone of Alpha Centauri a, but it is a gas giant. 
• Robert Lea reports that a doomed distant star system could soon explode in a supernova so bright it would be visible during the day 
• Eric Lagatta introduces the latest class of NASA astronauts. 
• Eric Lipton worries that the US might be losing the race to return to the Moon. 
• Stephanie Brown reports that "invisible" asteroids near Venus may threaten Earth in the future 
• Philip Ball talks about potential medical applications of nanobots and why they probably won't happen. 
• Faisal Hogue reports that there isn't one AI bubble, there are three.  
• Tereza Pultarova reports that the RT-70 radio telescope in Crimea has been destroyed by a Ukrainian drone attack. 
• Matt Novak reports that two "flying cars" have collided during rehearsals for Changchun Air Show in Jilin, China
• Penny Warner talks about the history of the Ouija board. 
   

Gaming: 

• Austin Manchester reviews the video game Hades 2. 
• Justin Carter declares that the videogame Ghost of Yotei is a stronger, self-assured sequel  
• Keith Stuart investigates why random lines of video game dialogue get stuck in our heads
• Tom Lechem reports that the US Department of Homeland Security, ICE and other US government agencies have used Pokemon characters and imagery to promote their raids on suspected illegal immigrants - without permission by Nintendo. 

 

Toys and collectibles:

• Pixel Dan reviews the Mattel Masters of the Universe Cartoon Collection She-Ra and Swift Wind two-pack.
• Still a Big Kid reviews the Mattel Thundercats X Masters of the Universe Lion-O action figure  

 

Free online fiction: 

• "The Lure of Stone" by Silvia Moreno-Garcia in Uncanny Magazine  
• "The Heartbreak Hotel on Plutonic Planet" by Carolyn Zhao in Strange Horizons 
• "A Fallen Angel Rings the Doorbell" by Jennifer Hudak in The Sunday Morning Transport.
• "Freediver" by Isabel J. Kim in Reactor. 
• "Five Impossible Things" by Koji A. Dae in Clarkesworld. 
• "City of One" by Stephen S. Power in Lightspeed.  
• "Human Voices" by Isabel J. Kim in Lightspeed. 
• "The Skull" by Eric Williams in Swords and Sorcery Magazine.
• " Prairie Teeth" by E.C. Dorgan in The Dark.
• "Mother Sun" by Amy Nagopaleen in Apex Magazine. 

Trailers and videos:

• Watch a trailer for The Bride. 
• Watch a trailer for It: Welcome to Derry. 
• Watch a featurette about season 5 of Stranger Things. 
• Watch a trailer for the latest incarnation of Robin Hood. 
• Watch a trailer for Wicked For Good. 
• Watch a teaser for The Dragon King. 
• Watch another teaser for The Dragon King. 
• Watch a trailer for The Astronaut. 
• Watch a trailer for Avatar: Fire and Ash. 
• Watch a trailer for V/H/S Halloween 
• Watch a trailer for Greenland 2: Migration. 

Speculative Fiction Links of the Week for September 19, 2025

 

It's time for the latest weekly round-up of interesting links about speculative fiction from around the web, this week with Star Trek: Strange New Worlds and Star Trek in general, Masters of the Universe in general, Peacemaker and the DC Cinematic Universe in general, season 3 of Foundation,, Alien Earth, Outlander: Blood of My Blood, season 2 of Gen V, season 13 of Futurama, Him, The Long Walk, tributes to Robert Redford and much more.

Speculative fiction in general:

• Lisa Tuttle shares her favourite recent science fiction, fantasy and horror novels. 
• Alex Brown shares must read short speculative fiction for August 2025
• Lorna Wallace shares six horror stories set in theme parks and carnivals  
• James Davis Nicoll shares five artificially layered planets and world cities. 
• Sam Reader shares seven books featuring haunted or sinister libraries. 
• Nick Medina shares seven horror novels that use of folklore, legend and myth 
• Julie Berry finds unexpected parallels between mythology and true crime. 
• S.L. Woeppel talks about ghosts and trauma in horror and crime fiction.  
• Gwen C. Katz talks about gender and trans identity in the Chanur series by C.J. Cherryh. 
• Katie Engelhardt profiles children's book author Robert Munsch who is suffering from dementia. 
• Jason Koebler interviews several people whose hobbies have become exorbitantly expensive due to Trump's tariffs.
• Peter Tyers remembers Chelsea Quinn Yarbro. 
• Fantasy author Ru Emerson has died aged 80. 

 

Comics and Art:

• Bill Capossere reviews Spectators by Brian K Vaughan and Niko Henrichon 
• Zach Rabiroff reports that DC Comics cancelled the Red Hood mini-series following insensitive remarks of writer Gretchen Felker-Martin about the assassination of far right podcaster Charlie Kirk.
• Philippe Goddin, one of the world's leading experts on Hergé's work, has died aged 81. 
• Tom Gauld shares a cartoon about classic novels reworked for men. 

 

Film and TV: 

• Benjamin Lee calls Eternity a charming afterlife romantic comedy. 
• Phuong Le calls Can I Get a Witness? a dystopian future fable of planned death  
• Catherine Bray calls The Astronaut a slow-burn science fiction horror film. 
• Peter Bradshaw calls Happyend an Orwellian Japanese high-school drama.
• Natalie Keogan calls Rabbit Trap an excruciatingly dull, 1970s-set folk horror film.
• Catherine Bray calls Diplo: The Mighty Dinosaur a strange, not entirely convincing attempt to add conceptual depth to an animated children's film.
• Leslie Felperin calls The Boatyard a pointless and witless, atrociously acted cannibal horror film.  
• Diana Keng shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Invasion. 
• Isaiah Colbert shares his thoughts on the latest episode of Dan Da Dan. 
• Cheryl Eddy shares her thoughts on Chain Reaction, a documentary about The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. 
• Maya Salam takes a look behind the scenes of Guillermo Del Toro's take on Frankenstein.  
• Zack Budryk discusses two recent science fiction films that embrace joy in the face of death 
• Lorna Wallace shares five SFF movies and TV shows set during WWII. 
• Leah Thomas shares a round-up of sports themed anime. 
• William Hughes interviews Tony Gilroy, showrunner of Andor. 
• Ryan Gilbey interviews Charlie Kaufman, director of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, How to Shoot a Ghost and others.
• Luke Bouma revisits the 1963 science fiction TV series The Outer Limits. 
• Tyler Dean revisits the 1985 fantasy movie Return to Oz  
• Judith Tarr revisits the 1989 science fiction film The Abyss. 
• Keith R.A. DeCandido revisits the 1996 Babylon 5 episode“Whatever Happened to Mr. Garibaldi?” 
• Justin Carter revisits the 2005 animated TV show Loonatics Unleashed 
• Kali Wallace revisits the 2007 science fiction film Sunshine. 
• Lois Beckett shares Steven Spielberg's reminiscences about the making of Jaws. 
• Sian Cain and Oliver Holmes report that the late night TV show Jimmy Kimmel Live! has been suspended indefinitely because of allegedly disrespectful comments about the murder of far right podcaster Charlie Kirk after US government pressure
• Cheryl Eddy reports that creatives and Disney+ subscribers are calling for boycotts over Jimmy Kimmel's suspension 
• Ryan Coleman reports that Fatima Cortez Todd, widow of Tony Todd, has called out the Emmys for omitting Tony Todd from their In Memoriam segment, just as the Oscars had done before. 
• Lauren Huff reports about other omissions from the In Memoriam segment of the Emmys. 
• Production designer Stuart Craig who worked on the Harry Potter films and many others has died aged 83.

 

Tributes to Robert Redford:

• Actor and director Robert Redford, star of The Sting, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, All the President's Men, Three Days of the Condor, Captain America: The Winter Soldier and many others, has died aged 89. 
• Peter Bradshaw remembers Robert Redford.  
• Benjamin Lee shares tributes to Robert Redford by various co-stars and friends. 
• Jacob Oller remembers Robert Redford. 
• Justin Carter remembers Robert Redford. 
• Steve Vertlieb remembers Robert Redford. 
• Chloe Walker remembers Robert Redford. 
• Greg Whitmore shares photos from Robert Redford's lengthy career. 
• Adrian Horton praises Robert Redford for founding the Sundance film festival. 

 

Comments on Masters of the Universe in general:

• James Eatock celebrates forty years of She-Ra: Princess of Power.
• The Eternia Four podcast discuss some speculations about the upcoming Masters of the Universe live action film. 

 

Comments on season 3 of Foundation: 

• Melody McCune shares her thoughts on  “The Darkness”, the season 3 finale of Foundation.
• Paul Levinson shares his thoughts on  “The Darkness”, the season 3 finale of Foundation.
• Cheryl Eddy shares her thoughts on  “The Darkness”, the season 3 finale of Foundation.
• Vanessa Armstrong shares her thoughts on  “The Darkness”, the season 3 finale of Foundation.
• The Stars End podcast share their thoughts on  “The Darkness”, the season 3 finale of Foundation. 
• Adam Chitwood interviews David S. Goyer, showrunner of Foundation. 
• Cheryl Eddy interviews Synnøve Karlsen, who plays Bayta mallow in Foundation. 
• Raymond Ang interviews Lee Pace who plays Brother Day in Foundation. 

Comments on Peacemaker and the DC Cinematic Universe in general: 

• Emmet Asher-Perrin shares their thoughts on the latest episode of Peacemaker.
• Melody McCune shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Peacemaker. 
• Jarrod Jones shares his thoughts on the latest episode of Peacemaker. 
• Isaiah Colbert shares his thoughts on the latest episode of Peacemaker.  

 

Comments on Star Trek: Strange New Worlds and Star Trek in general: 

• Avery Kaplan and Diana Keng share their thoughts on the season 3 finale of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.     
• Emmet Asher Perrin declares that Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ bumpy third season highlights a core problem in modern TV 
• James Whitbrook declares that Star Trek: Strange New Worlds needs to imagine more for its female characters  
• Gavia Baker-Whitelaw points out that Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has an evil alien problem.
• Mick Joest interviews Henry Alonso Myers and Akiva Goldsman, showrunners of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.  
• Trent Moore revisits the 2001 Star Trek show Star Trek Enterprise. 
• Avery Kaplan shares nine great Klingon episodes of various incarnations of Star Trek. 
• David Smith interviews actor James Cromwell, who played Zephron Cochrane in Star Trek: First Contact and also appeared in Babe, LA Confidential and many others. 

 

Comments on seaosn 2 of Gen V: 

• Isaiah Colbert shares everything to remember about Gen V before it returns for season 2  
• Manuel Betancourt declares that Gen V returns with bloody black humor and depressingly timely plotlines 
• Amelia Emberwing declares that season 2 of Gen V stays true to itself while successfully honoring Chance Perdomo 
• Melody McCune shares her thoughts on season 2 of Gen V. 
• Melody McCune shares her thoughts on episode 1 of season 2 of Gen V.  
• Melody McCune shares her thoughts on episode 2 of season 2 of Gen V. 
• Melody McCune shares her thoughts on episode 3 of season 2 of Gen V.  
• Sarah Dempster finds that the male full-frontal is really gratuitous in season 2 of Gen V. 
• Isaiah Colbert reports that Gen V had big plans for Chance Perdomo before his untimely death  

 

Comments on Alien: Earth:

• Leah Schnelbach shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Alien Earth.
• Matt Schimkowitz shares his thoughts on the latest episode of Alien Earth. 
• Germain Lussier shares his thoughts on the latest episode of Alien Earth.  
• James Poniewozik declares that Alien Earth speaks to the fear of children being sacrificed to technology.  
• Camestros Felapton shares his appreciation for the eyeball tentacle momster from Alien Earth.

 

Comments on Outlander: Blood of My Blood: 

• Melody McCune shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Outlander: Blood of My Blood. 
• Melody McCune shares her favourite moments from the latest episode of Outlander: Blood of My Blood.
• Watch a trailer for season 8 of Outlander. 

 

Comments on The Long Walk: 

• Haley Zapal calls The Long Walk a brutal, harrowing and incredible film that plumbs the depths of violence, despair, and friendship.
• Leah Schnelbach declares that The Long Walk posits that the cure for the male loneliness epidemic is death
• Jacob Oller notes that the ending of the film adaptation of The Long Walk manages to be even bleaker than that of the novel. 
• Nick Romano interviews Francis Lawrence, director of The Long Walk, about the movie's ending. 
• Dessi Gomez interviews Garrett Wareing who plays Stebbins in The Long Walk. 

 

Comments on season 13 of Futurama: 

• Cheryl Eddy declares that season 13 of Futurama is stuffed with sly commentary and science fiction delights
• Avery Kaplan shares episode by episode reviews of season 13 of Futurama.  

Comments on Him: 

• Andrew Lawrence calls  Him a disappointing football horror film.  
• Natalie Keogan declares that Him fumbles its football horror story
• Germain Lussier declares that Him is filled with great, creepy ideas, but never quite brings it all home 

 

Awards:

• The winners of the 2025 Deutscher Science Fiction Preis have been announced.
• The winners of the 2025 SFRA Awards have been announced. 
• The longlist for the 2025 Giller Prize has been announced. 
• The 2025 finalists for the National Toy Hall of Fame have been announced. 
• The winners of the 2025 Emmy Awards have been announced.
• Aaron Jones takes a look at the SFF shows among the 2025 Emmy winners. 

 

Writing, publishing and promotion: 

• Jack Anderson shares five tips for writing a genius (even if you aren’t one)
• Brian McAuley explains how to write a slasher. 
• Karen Fisher profiles lawyers who push back against book bannings. 

 

Interviews:

• Locus interviews Yume Kitasei. 
• Runalong the Shelves interviews M.H. Ayinde.
• Roseanna Pendlebury interviews Martin Cahill. 
• Dag Rambraut interviews Dave Dobson. 

 

Reviews: 

• Gary Whitehouse reviews The Folded Sky by Elizabeth Bear.
• Marlene Harris reviews The Shattering Peace by John Scalzi 
• Rob Bedford reviews The Shattering Peace by John Scalzi  
• Lesa Holstine reviews The Shattering Peace by John Scalzi
• Marlene Harris reviews Sunward by William Alexander 
• Janet Webb reviews Framed in Death by J.D. Robb  
• Marion Deeds reviews Automatic Noodle by Annalee Newitz 
• Ainy Cormac reviews Molten Flux by Jonathan Weiss 
• James Davis Nicoll reviews Awake in the Floating City by Susanna Kwan  
• Julia Kitvaria Sarene reviews The Nobleman’s Guide to Scandal and Shipwrecks by Mackenzie Lee 
• Mark Yon reviews The Second Death of Locke by V.K. Bovalino. 
• Sasha Bonkowsky reviews The Magician of Tiger Castle by Louis Sachar.
• Gary K. Wolfe reviews Hemlock and Silver by T. Kingfisher   
• Marlene Harris reviews Hemlock and Silver by T. Kingfisher  
• Marion Deeds reviews When the Tides Held the Moon by Venessa Vida Kelley
• James Tivendale reviews Crossroads of Ravens by Andrzej Sapkowski
• Blue Book Balloon reviews For the Road by Stark Holborn 
• Paul Weimer reviews A Philosophy of Thieves by Fran Wilde  
• Julia Kitvaria Sarene reviews Tournament of Shadows by Tilly Wallace 
• Jenny Hamilton reviews The Possession of Alba Díaz by Isabel Cañas  
• Lesa Holstine reviews A New Lease on Death by Olivia Blacke 
• Archita Mitra reviews Immaculate Conception by Ling Ling Huang  
• Martin Cahill reviews The Library at Hellebore by Cassandra Khaw
• Taylor Pitman reviews Pearl by Tim Waggoner 
• Rob Bedford reviews Fiend by Alma Katsu.  
• BOLO Books reviews Fiend by Alma Katsu. 
• Robin Marx reviews The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones 
• Runalong the Shelves reviews The Other Frankenstein by Melissa F. Olson 
• Alex Brown reviews You Weren’t Meant to Be Human by Andrew Joseph White. 
• Runalong the Shelves reviews Phengaris by Anna Orridge 
• James Davis Nicoll reviews Spread Me by Sarah Gailey  
• Kevin Power reviews What We Can Know by Ian McEwan 
• Ian Mond reviews Enjoy Your Stay at the Shamrock Motel by Andrew Kaufman 
• Arley Sorg reviews Where Are You Really From by Elaine Hsieh Chou 
• Runalong the Shelves reviews Uncertain Sons And Other Stories By Thomas Ha 
• Runalong the Shelves reviews Roots of My Fears, edited by Gemma Amor
• Alex Brown reviews Amplitudes: Stories of Queer and Trans Futurity, edited by Lee Mandelo 

 

Classics reviews:

• Bobby Derie revisits the 1936 Northwest Smith planetary romance “Lost Paradise” by C. L. Moore
• Sandy Ferber revisits the 1943 fantasy novel The Landslide. 
• Alan Brown revisits the 1964 time travel novel Invasion From 2500 by Norman Edwards a.k.a. Terry Carr and Ted White. 
• Victoria Silverwolf revisits the October 1970 issue of Fantastic 
• James Davis Nicoll revisits the 1977 science fiction novel The Dosadi Experiment by Frank Herbert 
• James Davis Nicoll revisits the 1992 science fiction collection Geodesic Dreams: The Best Short Fiction of Gardner Dozois by Gardner Dozois 
• Alissa Burger revisits the 1995 YA horror trilogy The Cataluna Chronicles by R.L. Stine. 
• Z.B. Steele revisits the 2007 Malazan epic fantasy novel Reaper’s Gale by Steven Erikson 

 

Con and event reports:

• Arley Sorg reports about the Gen Con Writers Symposium at Gen Con in Indianapolis, Indiana. 
• Cora Buhlert reports about the Heicon '70, the 1970 Worldcon in Heidelberg, Germany, as well as the 1970 Hugo winners.  
• Sue Burke reports about the 2024 Windycon in Oak Brook, Illinois. 
• Dave Hook reports about the panel "Why Anthologies" at the 2025 Worldcon in Seattle, Washington. 
• Sabina Graves reports about the Universal Horror Unleashed event at the Area 51 immersive experience center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
• James Whitbrook reports that a scuba-diving thief stole thousands of dollars from the floating Paddlefish restaurant in Disney World in Orlando, Florida. 

 

Science and technology:

• Oliver Millman reports that scientists claim they’ve made ‘pivotal step’ in bringing back the dodo for first time in three hundred years 
• Winona Menezes reports about the Tektite II undersea habitat experiment in 1970.
• J. Todd Scott reports about the town of Green Bank in West Virginia, where equipment emitting electromagnetic waves is banned to protect the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Radio Telescope 
   

Gaming: 

• Joe DelFranco reviews the video game Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 by Sandfall Interactive 
• Matt Larkin reviews the remastered edition of the video games Legacy of Kain Soul Reaver 1 and 2

 

Toys and collectibles:

• Still a Big Kid reviews the Jada Toys Ultra Street Fighter 2 Sagat action figure. 
• Erkki Forster reports that the White House insists that Chief of Staff Stephen Miller does not play with dolls, despite reports to the contrary.

 

Free online fiction: 

• "The Nature of Spells, the Nature of Children" by Aimee Ogden in Beneath Ceaseless Skies 
• "Holly on the Mantel, Blood on the Hearth" by Kate Francia in Beneath Ceaseless Skies. 
• "Laurie on the Radio" by Sam Davis in Reactor. 
• "Queen of the Communist Cannibals" by Cora Buhlert in Cliffhanger Magazine.
• "The Fury of the Glowmen" by David McGillveray in Clarkesworld. 
• "Aperture" by Alexander Jablokov in Clarkesworld. 
• "Energy and Rhythm" by I. A. Sykes in Swords and Sorcery Magazine.
• "A Final Song for the Ages" by Pedro Iniguez in Apex Magazine. 
• "The Girlfriend Experience" by C.Z. Tacks in Lightspeed.  
• "On an Unusual Kind of Spatially Distributed Haunting" by Bogi Takács in Lightspeed. 
• "The Toddler" by Sanni Omodolapo in The Dark. 
• "Safe Face" by Ash Huang in Nightmare Magazine. 

Trailers and videos:

• Watch a clip from season 4 of The Witcher. 
• Watch a trailer for The Sisters Grimm. 
• Watch a trailer for Good Boy. 
• Watch a trailer for Anaconda. 
• Watch a trauler for Now You See Me: Now You Don’t 
• Watch a trailer for The Great Flood.
• Watch a trailer for Splinter Cell: Death Watch. 
• Watch a trailer for Queens of the Dead. 
• Watch a deleted scene from Fantastic Four: First Steps. 

Speculative Fiction Links of the Week for September 12, 2025

 

 

It's time for the latest weekly round-up of interesting links about speculative fiction from around the web, this week with Star Trek: Strange New Worlds and Star Trek in general, Masters of the Universe in general, Peacemaker and the DC Cinematic Universe in general, season 3 of Foundation,, Alien Earth, Outlander: Blood of My Blood, season 2 of Wednesday, The Conjuring: Last Rites, The Long Walk, the Anthropic AI settlement and much more.

Speculative fiction in general:

• Lacy Baugher Milas shares the most anticipated romantasy books of fall 2025 
• Tobias Carroll shares indie and small press speculative fiction for September and October 2025 
• Dave Hook shares an overview of women in speculative fiction over the decades.
• Alex Brown shares their most anticipated young adult SFF for September and October 2025 
• Brenda Clough tries to define a taxonomy of historical science fiction 
• James Davis Nicoll shares five science fiction books that decided to just ignore the limitations imposed by the speed of light. 
• Ruthanna Emrys talks about lingustic science fiction and the Sapir Whorf hypothesis. 
• James Davis Nicoll shares five science fiction stories built around specific, context-dependent disabilities 
• Joe Hart talks about the fear and fascination of gothic fiction 
• Lorna Wallace shares five horror stories featuring big families and big drama 
• Amanda Chapman shares her favourite subtly supernatural novels. 
• Neil Sharpson explains how writing a vampire novel made him more comfortable with death. 
• Jo Walton shares her reading list for August 2025. 
• Dmytro Gromov and Oleg Ladyzhenskij a.k.a. Henry Lion Oldie talk about the state of Ukrainian science fiction.
• Molly Templeton notes that criticism is apparently dying once again. 
• Matthew Petti reports that the FBI once investigated science fiction author Vernor Vinge. 
• Locus remembers Guy Lillian. 
• Janet Rudoph remembers Chelsea Quinn Yarbro. 

 

Comics and Art:

• Robin Marx reviews Conan the Barbarian #23 by Jim Zub and Fernando Dagnino 
• Brad Hawley reviews I Want to Eat Your Pancreas: The Complete Manga Collection by Yoru Sumino and Idumi Kirihara  
• Jason Sacks takes a look at the underground comics of the late 1960s and early 1970s. 
• Winston Cho reports that Warner Bros. Discovery sues the AI company Midjourney for copyright infringement  
• Michael Whelan and Michael Everett discuss book cover layout from the POV of an illustrator. 

 

Film and TV: 

• Ann Michelle Harris calls Washington Black a unique coming-of-age story about the search for knowledge and family connection 
• Trace Sauveur calls Guillermo del Toro’s take on Frankenstein an extravagant gothic science fiction melodrama. 
• Cassie Tongue calls Lesbian Space Princess a fizzy animated film with loads of laughs and a lot of heart 
• Natalia Keogan calls Sacrifice a superficial satire of the climate crisis. 
• Benjamin Lee calls Obsession a nasty horror film which sees a wish for true love go horribly wrong 
• Cheryl Eddy declares that Traumatika puts a gruesome spin on the idea of facing your demons  
• Jim Vorel calls Rabbit Trap mesmerizing but alienating  
• Jason Gorber calls Dust Bunny ferociously fun 
• Diana Keng shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Invasion. 
• Isaiah Colbert shares his thoughts on the latest episode of Dan Da Dan. 
• Isaiah Colbert interviews Zach Aguilar and Johnny Yong Bosch, voice actors for the anime Infinity Castle. 
• Sabina Graves interviews David Howard Thornton who plays Art the Clown in the Terrifier movies. 
• Andrea Castañeda revisits the 1970 apocalyptic film Gas-s-s-s. 
• Ryan Britt revisits the 1975 science fiction series Space 1999. 
• Julio Bardini explains where the title of the 1982 science fiction film Blade Runner comes from. 
• Keith R.A. DeCandido revisits the 1996 Babylon 5 episode “The Hour of the Wolf” 
• Kali Wallace revisits the 2018 science fiction film High Life. 
• Richard Edwards declares that science fiction is the genre of ideas, so science fiction film and TV shouldn't just be about big budgets and spectacular visuals  
• Lee Mandelo shares ten queer Thai SFF shows to enjoy. 
• Dan Chaon discusses the lasting impact of the films of Tod Browning and Lon Chaney, though many of them are lost. 
• Stuart Heritage talks about cartoons getting political. 
• Animation Magazine reports that the Sesame Street archive is moving to YouTube. 
• Diana Keng pays a visit to Twede's Café in North Bend, Washington, which was the real life filming location for the Double R Diner in Twin Peaks.  
• The BBC reports that the Ellangowan Hotel in Creetown, Scotland, which was a filming location for the 1973 horror film The Wicker Man, will be turned into apartments. 
• Alexandria Wyckoff lists six rare and expensive VHS tapes. 
• Justin Carter reports that voice actor Greg Cipes, who voiced Beast Boy in various Teen Titans and other DC superhero other cartoons, claims he was fired by Warner Bros after being diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. 
• Rafael Boyd reports that a lightsaber prop used by Darth Vader in the original Star Wars trilogy has been sold at auction for 2.7 million British pounds. 
• Scott Spiegel, co-writer of Evil Dead II and executive producer of Hostel, has died aged 67. 

 

Comments on Masters of the Universe in general:

• James Eatock points out an Easter egg in the storyboards for the She-Ra: Princess of Power episode "He Ain't Heavy".
• He-Mania reports that comic artist Rob Liefeld shares some speculations about an upcoming movie that might be Masters of the Universe. 

 

Comments on season 3 of Foundation: 

• Melody McCune shares her thoughts on  “The Paths That Choose Us”, the latest episode of season 3 of Foundation.
• Paul Levinson shares his thoughts on  “The Paths That Choose Us”, the latest episode of season 3 of Foundation.
• Cheryl Eddy shares her thoughts on  “The Paths That Choose Us”, the latest episode of season 3 of Foundation.
• Rich Pelley interviews Jared Harris who plays Hari Seldon in Foundation. 
• Rick Porter reports that Foundation has been renewed for season 4. 

Comments on Peacemaker and the DC Cinematic Universe in general: 

• Emmet Asher-Perrin shares their thoughts on the latest episode of Peacemaker.
• Melody McCune shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Peacemaker. 
• Jarrod Jones shares his thoughts on the latest episode of Peacemaker. 
• Isaiah Colbert shares his thoughts on the latest episode of Peacemaker.  
• Ben Child wonders about the next Superman movie Man of Tomorrow.

 

Comments on Star Trek: Strange New Worlds and Star Trek in general: 

• Keith R.A. DeCandido shares his thoughts on “New Life and New Civilizations”, the season 3 finale of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.   
• James Whitbrook shares his thoughts on “New Life and New Civilizations”, the season 3 finale of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.  
• Caroline Siede shares her thoughts on “New Life and New Civilizations”, the season 3 finale of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.    
• Avery Kaplan shares her thoughts on “New Life and New Civilizations”, the season 3 finale of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. 
• Melody McCune shares her favourite quotes from “New Life and New Civilizations”, the season 3 finale of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.  
• Avery Kaplan and Diana Keng share their thoughts on “Terrarium”, the previous episode of season 3 of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.     
• Lily Osler wonders whether biology is destiny in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. 
• Meredith Jacobs discusses the Doctor Who references in season 3 of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. 
• Keith R.A. DeCandido shares his thoughts on "Paradise", the first episode of the audio drama Star Trek Khan.
• Vanessa Armstrong interviews Naveen Andrews who voices Khan Noonien Singh in a Star Trek audio drama. 
• Avery Kaplan shares five Star Trek episodes about two characters 
• Laurie Ulster reports that Star Trek Discovery stars Anthony Rapp and Wilson Cruz are disappointed that Star Trek Discovery never had a musical episode.

 

Comments on seaosn 2 of Wednesday: 

• Sabina Graves shares five things she loved and three things she didn’t about season 2 of Wednesday. 
• Arturo Serrano shares his thoughts on the second part of season 2 of Wednesday.  
• Savannah Salaxar interviews Owen Painter who plays Slurp in season 2 of Wednesday. 
• Lisa de los Reyes interviews the special effects team of Wednesday. 

 

Comments on Alien: Earth:

• Leah Schnelbach shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Alien Earth.
• Matt Schimkowitz shares his thoughts on the latest episode of Alien Earth. 
• Germain Lussier shares his thoughts on the latest episode of Alien Earth.  
• Ryan Britt interviews Noah Hawley, showrunner of Alien Earth.
• Saloni Gajjar interviews Jeff Russo, composer for Alien Earth. 
• Carson Blackwelder and Nigel Smith interview Sigourney Weaver who plays Ellen Riply in several Alien movies about Alien Earth. 

 

Comments on Outlander: Blood of My Blood: 

• Melody McCune shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Outlander: Blood of My Blood. 
• Melody McCune shares her favourite moments from the latest episode of Outlander: Blood of My Blood.

 

Comments on The Long Walk: 

• Steve Rose calls The Long Walk the grimmest mainstream movie for some time 
• Frank Scheck calls The Long Walk bleak, bruising and emotionally affecting 
• Jacob Oller calls The Long Walk a chummy, harrowing B-movie which respectably plods its way through its hellish metaphor. 
• Richard Swan declares that The Long Walk explores bonds forged in extremity and then trips over the finish line
• Jesse Hassenger declares that The Long Walk reaches for something profound and disturbing, while at the same time wary of risking a bad stretch. 
• James Hibberd interviews Mark Hamill who plays the Major in The Long Walk. 

 

Comments on The Conjuring: Last Rites: 

• Leah Schnelbach declares that The Conjuring: Last Rites hits both the highs and lows of the series
• Haley Zapal declares that The Conjuring: Last Rites isn't exactly scary, but will appease fans looking for an emotional finale for their horror mom and dad 
• Justin Carter reports that The Conjuring: Last Rites has had the best box office opening for the entire series.

Awards:

• The shortlist for the 2025 Glass Bell Award has been announced.
• The finalists for the 2025 Premio Ignotus have been announced.  
• The finalists for the 2025 Pegasus Awards have been announced. 

 

Writing, publishing and promotion: 

• Lauren Oliver talks about collective narrators. 
• Hannah Mary McKinnon explains how her corporate job made her a better writer of mysteries
• Elizabeth Bear points out that networking is just making friends
• Hank Phillippi Ryan talks about book tours. 
• P.A. Cornell reports how she walked away from a story sale to Analog, after Analog's new owners refused to budge on inacceptable contract terms, 
• Ted Johnson reports that Anthropic AI has agreed to pay 1.5 billion US dollar to settle the AI class action lawsuit brought forward to several authors.
• Jason Sanford dissects the Anthropic AI settlement and finds it not nearly as favourable as initially presented, especially since many authors are shut out altogether due to not having a US copyright registration.
• Jason Sanford shares an update about the Anthropic AI settlement. 
• Ashley Belanger reports that US District Judge William Alsup has refused to approve the Anthropic AI settlement.  
• Ed Nawotka reports that Apple is also being sued by authors for copyright infringement over the training of its AI system. 

 

Interviews:

• Locus interviews Cadwell Turnbull. 
• Martin Cahill interviews Kosoko Jackson.

 

Reviews: 

• Rob Bedford reviews The Two Lies of Faven Sythe by Megan E. O'Keefe. 
• Runalong the Shelves reviews  The Bewitching by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
• James Davis Nicoll reviews Queen Demon by Martha Wells
• Marion Deeds reviews The Secret Market of the Dead by Giovanni de Feo 
• Julia Kitvaria Sarene reviews The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy by Mackenzi Lee 
• Niall Harrison reviews The Island of Last Things by Emma Sloley 
• Julia Kitvaria Sarene reviews That Inevitable Victorian Thing by E.K. Johnston 
• Mark Yon reviews Spiderlight by Adrian Tchaikovsky. 
• Melissa A. Watkins reviews Novic by Eugen Bacon 
• Doreen Sheridan reviews Lucky Day by Chuck Tingle 
• Marlene Harris reviews A Tangle of Time by Josiah Bancroft 
• James Davis Nicoll reviews The Memory of the Ogisi  by Moses Ose Utomi 
• Julia Kitvaria Sarene reviews Once Was Willem by M.R. Carey 
• Paul Weimer reviews Hornytown Chutzpah by Andrew Hiller
• Rai Furniss-Greasley reviews When Among Crows by Veronica Roth
• Liz Bourke reviews The Needfire by M.K. Hardy 
• Marlene Harris reviews The Maiden and Her Monster by Maddie Martinez 
• James Davis Nicoll reviews The Unkillable Frank Lightning by Josh Rountree   
• Colleen Mondor reviews When Devils Sing by Xan Kaur 
• Sam Leith reviews The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown  
• Gabino Iglesias reviews The Ephemera Collector by Stacy Nathaniel Jackson 
• Paul Weimer reviews Audition for the Fox by Martin Cahill 
• Marlene Harris reviews Audition for the Fox by Martin Cahill
• Esmay Rosalyne reviews You Weren’t Meant to Be Human by Andrew Joseph White 
• Z.B. Steele reviews Demon by Rob J. Hayes 
• Adrian Collins reviews The Feeding by Anthony Ryan 
• Maura Krause reviews Predatory Natures by Amy Goldsmith  
• Fantasy Faction reviews The Company of Death by Elisa Hansen  
• Marlene Harris reviews Ushers by Joe Hill
• Gabino Iglesias reviews A Thousand Natural Shocks by Omar Hussain 
• Yagnishsing Dawoor reviews No Friend to This House by Natalie Haynes 
• Camestros Felapton reviews Katabasis by R.F.Kuang 
• Paul Di Filippo reviews A Catalog of Storms by Fran Wilde

 

Classics reviews:

• Brian Collins revisits the 1970 horror collection The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath by H. P. Lovecraft  
• Gideon Marcus revisits the October 1970 issue of Galaxy. 
• James Davis Nicoll revisits the 1980 anthology Galaxy: Thirty Years of Innovative Science Fiction, edited by Martin H. Greenberg, Joseph D. Olander and Frederik Pohl 
• Kat Hooper and Bill Capossere revisit the 2014 cozy space opera The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers 
• Judith Tarr revisits the 2018 science fiction novel And the Ocean Was Our Sky by Patrick Ness 

 

Con and event reports:

• Dave Hook reports about a panel entitled “The Fantastic Four: The First Family of Comics” at the 2025 Worldcon in Seattle, Washington. 
• Daniel Dern reports about the 2025 Readercon in Burlington, Massachussetts.  
• Locus reports about the 2025 Readercon in Burlington, Massachussetts.   
• Ed's Retro Geek Out reports about the 2025 Toyplosion in Castrop-Rauxel, Germany. 
• Mercedes Milligan reports that GalaxyCon LLC, which operates several US conventions, has announced a sweeping AI art ban 
• Germain Lussier looks ahead at Fantastic Fest in Austin, Texas. 
• Randee Dawn shares a photo of the Brooklyn Books & Booze event in Brooklyn, New York. 
• Germain Lussier reports about the exhibiton Shadowboxers by Jayson Weidel in Miamisburg, Ohio.
• Christina Rees reports about a tour of Guillermo Del Toro's collection of movie props and other artefacts in Santa Monica, California. 
• Matt Martin reports that Twilight tourism is still going strong in Forks, Washington, twenty years after the first Twilight book came out. 

 

Crowdfunding:

• Brackenbury Books is looking for funding for four New Edge Sword and Sorcery novellas.

 

Science and technology:

• Rubila Bob reports that bacteria unknown on Earth have been found aboard the Chinese space station Tiangong.
• Marcia Dunn reports that Marsquakes suggest that Mars has a solid core. 
• Issy Ronald and Amarachi Orie report that scientists have created rechargeable, multicolored, glow-in-the-dark succulent plants
• Eli Tan chronicles how "clanker" became an anti-AI slur. 
• Matthew Hutson wonders what the deal with UFOs is. 
   

Gaming: 

• Florence Smith Nicholls discusses her favourite archaeology video games. 
• C.T. Phipps reviews the video game Wanted Dead. 
• Elijah Gonzales reports how the hype surrounding the video game Hollow Knight: Silksong seems to have crashed multiple digital storefronts

 

Toys and collectibles:

• Still a Big Kid reviews the Mattel Masters of the Universe Masterverse New Etheria Hordak action figure.
• Still a Big Kid reviews the Mattel Masters of the Universe Cartoon Collection Mantenna action figure. 

 

Free online fiction: 

• "Four People I Need You to Kill Before the Dance Begins" by Louis Inglis Hall in Clarkesworld. 
• "The Right Kind of Royalty" by Ismail Soldan in Swords and Sorcery  
• "Finishing Touches" by Adam-Troy Castro in Nightmare Magazine. 
• "The Witch Trap" by Jennifer Hudak in The Dark. 
• "Changeling" by Frey Lylark in Apex Magazine. 
• "If a Digitized Tree Falls" by Ken Liu and Caroline M. Yoachim in Reactor. 
• "The Sunflower Covenant" by Lyrra Isanberg in Imagine 2200. 
• "Apeiron" by Cadwell Turnbull in Lightspeed.  
• "The Place I Came To" by Filip Hajdar Drnovšek Zorko in Lightspeed.  
• "Large Emotional Models" by Cecilia Tan in The Sunday Morning Transport.

Trailers and videos:

• Watch a trailer for Tron Ares, 
• Watch a trailer for season 2 of Hazbin Hotel. 
• Watch a trailer for Dust Bunny. 
• Watch a trailer for John Candy: I Like Me